


Shed

by Mister_Spock, Therm (Mister_Spock)



Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-19
Updated: 2020-02-22
Packaged: 2021-02-28 03:55:52
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 21,390
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22807459
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mister_Spock/pseuds/Mister_Spock, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mister_Spock/pseuds/Therm
Summary: He woke up choking and gagging on the feel of something crawling out of him and he spat on the ground beside his bed, wiped the sweat off his brow as he got up and walked away from his cot, from his cell. This place made him sick, literally.
Comments: 3
Kudos: 11





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Huge thanks to Tansy for her help and support with this. No pairings, no OC's. Set after Season two when they're at the prison just nothing to do with what the S3 trailer showed or The Governor or anything, my little world here.

Something was wrong.

Deep inside of him, something rotten and just wrong.  
It had been in him since they arrived at the prison yet he'd barely been able to acknowledge it.

But as things calmed, slowed slightly from the manic pace of before, the feeling in him grew. Anxiety, fear and dread that something was very wrong and it crawled up his throat and he had to swallow to keep it down, keep it inside of him.

He couldn't stand being inside those walls, inside that prison, locked away, it twisted at his guts and he was volunteering for watch constantly. Until they got a schedule and then he had to come up with a reason to get outside.  
That wasn't so hard, it was staying out there that was tricky.

He woke up choking and gagging on the feel of something crawling out of him and he spat on the ground beside his bed, wiped the sweat off his brow as he got up and walked away from his cot, from his cell. This place made him sick, literally.

He wandered around until he was stood in the kitchen. The large preparation area that was once used to feed the thousands of men that would have been locked inside and now fed their small group.

He felt almost too weak to stand as he came to a halt just inside the room, a hand reached out onto the nearest surface to support him and the pots on it clanging noisily against one another.

That's when Lori appeared as if from nowhere, in front of him, looking a little concerned as she rubbed a hand across her stomach. He realised she was speaking to him and concentrated on her face, the noise. "Wha?"

"I said are you okay? It's late, everyone else is asleep. You look half asleep yourself."

"I jus' couldn't sleep," he said, starting to realise it was night time. It was dark and he'd barely noticed. It did explain why he felt so tired though. "Why are you up?"

"I was hungry," she said. "Want some?"

He was tired but was he hungry? He felt sick. He felt tired too and he wasn't sleeping so maybe he felt sick because he was hungry? He couldn't figure out the last time he ate something really, it became so automatic and mundane, he paid no attention to it. How the hell had he got into such a state? What the fuck was wrong with him.

He shook his head. "I need to sleep,"

Lori nodded heading back over to the bowl of food she had. "You do look like you need it," she agreed.

He turned to head away from her, head back to that room, that cell, that had become his place. But he hesitated, turning back to her briefly. "It's a shed," he mumbled before he walked off.

Lori watched him go but something made her following him. He hadn't wandered far from the kitchen though, just stood beyond it wavering slightly. She started to wonder if he were sick or.  
"Daryl?" She kept her distance, knowing the man could be a little unpredictable. "Hey?" she tried again and he turned his head slightly towards her.

She gently touched his arm, trying to offer some kind of comfort. Touch was always her way, reach out to people, make a connection. She felt apprehensive with him but knew this wasn't exactly intrusive. She kept her hand lightly on his arm as she moved around into his line of vision. "What are you talking about? What's a shed?"

His face scrunched slightly in confusion at her words. "Bed. I'm going to bed."

"Oh," she said, feeling foolish. She rubbed her hand on his arm, smiled. "Go lay down before you fall down," she told him, heading back into the kitchen.

When she left the kitchen a few minutes later, ready to head back to bed, Daryl was nowhere to be seen.

~

It was dark and smelt.

Smelt musky and earthy, not unpleasant but it mixed with something burnt and it turned the small shed into a place he didn't like to explore any more. But then the door shut and he was inside. Trapped.

He couldn't see anything, the window had been covered over a long time ago by the piles of junk that filled the small space.

He'd thought it had been Merle's joke at first. He was funny like that. Lock Daryl in a cupboard, in his room, and Merle would stand outside, laughing while Daryl would bang to get out and he always let him out, as soon as he promised to do something for his freedom.  
Merle usually had something he wanted. A chore he wanted Daryl to do for him or something he'd get Daryl to steal from a shop. Nothing big.  
So when Daryl banged a few times of the shed door and didn't hear Merle's cackled laughter he worried. Maybe he'd decided to be cruel this time Maybe he just wanted him out of the way. He looked through a gap and saw it wasn't Merle but his Daddy. No matter how hard he banged on the door, it didn't budge and he couldn't get his Daddy to stop walking away, no matter how hard he banged or what words he cried out.

So when he was out of sight, he crouched down on the floor and stayed quiet.

Maybe he'd be let out quicker if he kept his mouth shut. He stayed pried up as close as he could to the door, watching and waiting for someone to come. He waited until the light faded and he was left alone in the dark.

He sat up quickly.

The relief he felt at not being in that damn shed was short-lived as he realised where he was.

He shot out of bed grabbing his crossbow as he headed towards the prison exit. He didn't get out the door before Rick called out after him.

He stopped but didn't turn or go back, waited for the other man to catch up to him.

"What are you doing?"

"Headin' out," he replied, keeping it simple.

Rick had stood just behind him and now came round in front of him. Daryl made sure not to meet his gaze, suddenly finding a thread that needed his immediate attention. He must have faded out a little because Rick stepped up closer. Was nearer, looking a little concerned and Daryl just stared blankly at him for a moment. "What?" he snapped, stepping back from Rick's invasion of his space.

Rick seemed to consider himself for a moment. "Look just... don't go too far, okay? You're on watch in a few hours."

With that, Rick walked away.  
Fuck. He'd forgot about watch. That was about right. He'd have only a few hours away from this place before he'd be forced to come back.

The tower wasn't much better than being in prison, but at least he could feel the fresh air against his skin. Better than inside.

He headed out.

~

Carol was on watch when he got back.

He headed straight up to relieve her. It wasn't until she gave him a certain look that he realised, she wasn't supposed to be there.  
Fuck.

"Is everything okay?" she asked, voice concerned, a slight frown creasing her features. She always looked worried about something.

"Nope."

"You were late. I took over from T Dog for you..."

"He coulda waited," Daryl interrupted.

Carol bit her lip nervously. "You were over an hour late when I took over, I've been here nearly two hours," she hesitated. "Rick was about ready to go out after you. None of us knew if you were okay."

"Course I'm okay, woman. Can take care of myself."

She sighed quietly. He seemed to have missed the point. "You were three hours late, Daryl. Where were you?"

He frowned at her like she was crazy. "Where do you think I was?" He had enough of her and walked away to another spot on the tower to keep watch. Thankfully she got the hint and left. He watched her head into the prison, glad she was gone.

He settled down, content. He felt he could breathe again after today.

~

Rick chewed him out.

He came up before Daryl's shift was due to end and gave him some lecture about responsibility and how unfair it had been to T Dog and Carol and to him. How they'd all been worried and Rick would have risked people to search for him

Daryl let the words wash over him because there was nothing Rick could say that would make him regret going out there today. Fuck it, he started to feel normal again and that was worth the lecture. So he didn't argue it or anything, just let Rick say his piece and nodded a few times when it seemed as though Rick were waiting for something and he seemed happier with that.

It was Rick's turn on watch and Daryl headed inside. Grabbed some food and listened to the idle chat of the others. He didn't mind sitting there for a while with them. It was almost nice.

Lori was talking about when Carl was a baby as she stroked her stomach and Herschel talked about his girls being babies and how it seemed like yesterday to him. Glenn even chipped in with something about a cousin having a baby, or maybe a cousin who was a baby, Daryl didn't pay enough attention to know. Carol didn't talk about Sophia though, he noticed that.

And then suddenly out of nowhere, it hit him. The feeling had crawled back inside him.

That feeling that he'd somehow suffocate in this building if he spent another second inside it came back, stronger than it had been before. He gripped into the base of the chair he sat on, desperate not to draw attention to himself with his eagerness to leave. He waited until he felt he had a hold of himself enough to move away from the chair, standing on legs that felt like they were made of jelly. No one but Carol paid any attention to him as he stood and headed towards the door that would lead to the cells they'd been using.

He nodded at her, hoping the simple gesture was enough to ease her mind and she returned with a gentle smile watching him for a moment before turning her eyes back to the others.

~

He woke. In darkness and filth.

His own filth made the stench in the confined space almost unbearable.

But there was movement just beyond him. He scrambled forward. Maybe Daddy had come back to let him out.  
He peaked through the gap and saw Merle. He was stood a little way from the shed, throwing the stray cat out that would occasionally manage to sneak into their house.

Daryl was taping on the door gently before he had even thought about it. "Merle?" he croaked out quietly and his brother stilled a moment, trying to locate the sound.

"Daryl, stop pissing about and get your ass out here," he demanded.

He didn't know what to say so just knocked a little louder until Merle's eyes fell upon the shed. He laughed then. Like he always did when he'd pulled one of those stunts and Daryl felt a terrible fear that maybe this was Merle's idea. He watched as Merle started to walk towards the shed. Maybe Merle would let him out. He'd do whatever Merle wanted, he just wanted to get out.

"You get your dumb ass locked in?" Merle asked, stopping in front of the door. Daryl heard him just outside. The lock on the outside jiggled as Merle tested it. They never had the shed locked. He saw Merle walk away and fear gripped him.

"Please lemme out, Merle. I'll do your chores..."

He didn't get a chance to say anything else as he saw Merle returning with a shovel and he heard the shovel repeatedly crack into the shed door. It was so loud inside the shed that Daryl had to press his hands over his ears as hard as he could, trying to block out the noise. The wood cracked and broke, rotten as it was and outside the lock fell onto the ground, still secure but it's wooden base splintered.  
Merle opened the door and Daryl squinted up at him, the bright light hurting his eyes but he knew enough to know Merle was mad. Mad as hell.

Daryl was too afraid to move, to climb out.  
Merle crouched down in front of him, still mad but it somehow stilled. "C'mon boy, get inside and clean yourself up." Merle held out his hand and took hold of Daryl's skinny arm, pulling him out of the shed gently...

The first thought he had when he woke was of Merle.

That gentle touch he'd had that day helping him out of the shed and now it was all gone.  
Maybe Merle was gone with it by now.  
Daryl had no way of knowing and it made his heart lurch painfully in his chest. He never really thought much about Merle but right now, he wished he was here to get him out of this.

~

The world beyond the prison seemed to stretch out endlessly before him.

The bars mocked him with its promise of freedom, showing something he couldn't have. Taunting him.  
He'd barely been able to sleep, mind in overdrive. In fact, he didn't want to sleep if he kept going back there. He didn't want to be there any more than he wanted to be here.

His thoughts were interrupted by approaching footsteps and he turned his head slightly.

Rick had clearly been looking for him and Daryl probably hadn't made matters easier by wandering the prison, looking for a way to make the place seem less suffocating.

Rick seemed to hesitate a moment before speaking. "You feel up to going out?"

Daryl's relief at being asked almost overshadowed the attention he paid to the words Rick used. Almost. "Feel up to it?"

"You just seem a little... distracted the last few days," Rick said, giving careful thought to the words he spoke.

Daryl watched Rick a moment before it all clicked in his mind. Rick was a careful person. Careful with his words especially. Rick asking Daryl if he felt up to it was to get a reaction, waiting for Daryl to get angry enough to maybe say what was troubling him.

It might have worked if Daryl hadn't had enough time to study Rick by now. Daryl nodded his head in his usual way. "Yeah, I was feeling a little off. Feel much better now though,"

Rick visibly seemed to relax and Daryl almost felt bad for the lie. But what else was he to do, sit down and talk about his childhood? That wasn't going to happen, not with anybody. And he liked Rick, as far as liking people went, he was probably one of the few people in his life he could actually say that he liked. Daryl wanted to laugh at that thought. Him liking a cop, seemed crazy as hell. He guessed the world really had gone to hell.

He focused back on Rick who had started talking. Had to pay better attention, he reminded himself. Maybe he shouldn't be going out but he knew that once he got out from this prison, he'd be himself again.  
You are yourself. This is you, you're fucked up.  
He ignored that voice. Sensible and so true in his mind, but not what he wanted to hear right now.

Rick had produced a map and was pointing at places and saying things about supplies and danger and it just about washed over him in a way he hated. Because he knew it was so dangerous out there but yet he couldn't focus, not on Rick, not when that damn kid in his head kept crying for Merle to let him out the shed and it wouldn't stop.

Something gave him away because he realised that Rick was not speaking any more and his glare was fixed on Daryl, concern clear as day.

And he was waiting. For an answer to something. With nothing to say, Rick repeated himself. "I said are you sure you're okay with this?"

He knew Rick was doubting this plan right now, could tell by the look in his eyes. But he just nodded and looked back at the map as though he knew everything Rick had said and was now putting all the pieces together.

"Okay, Maggie is getting ready. She's got the list of supplies." Rick started to leave before turning a gentle smile tugging at his lips. "You might get a strict talking to from Glenn before you leave. The whole 'bring her back safely' thing," Rick joked.

Daryl sneered at the idea of Glenn talking to him like that. "Yeah, he wants to try that."

And whether he meant it or not, Rick smiled and headed off the way he came.

Then he realised, he was taking Maggie with him? Fuck.

~

"Why are you comin' again?"

"Coming? I'm the one driving, I think you're tagging along with me," Maggie shot back.  
Daryl rolled his eyes and looked out the window in the opposite direction of Maggie.

Before they'd left they'd gone over the plan once again and it was then he realised they were going to a doctor's surgery. Getting supplies for Lori, hoping that Herschel's days of looking after cows and chickens would mean he was now capable of delivering a healthy baby while they were frighteningly ill-equipped for it.

So, the journey was to raid as much as they could from the doctor's. He felt better being out of that prison yet going on this journey didn't exactly fill him with joy.

It was unlikely a surgery would be untouched. Any survivors would head there and loot what they could. There was a hospital a few miles beyond that but Rick told them not to go there and if the surgery proved to be a washout they'd have a larger group head out again.

"Anyway, would you know what half this stuff is?" Maggie asked, flapping the list in front of him.

He spared her a glance and a filthy look before turning back to the window. Just because she had a point didn't mean he had to admit to it.

He watched the world pass him by.

He didn't know how he got back there. Back in the shed and every time he stepped beyond it, he'd be in the prison, looking for Merle, catching a glimpse of him and following him.

Following a bloody trail.

This was so wrong.

He jolted a little, realisation that he was drifting into a world he didn't want to go into.

Sitting up a little straighter, he wound down the window, trying to let the fresh air keep him awake.

"You can get some sleep. I'll wake you if anything looks bad," Maggie assured him, tone softer than before.

"No," he said and sparing her a quick glance, mumbled thanks. He studied the map again for a while, where they were heading but the motion from the car eventually made him feel a little nauseous and he put it back down. "Did ya bring any water?"

"Couple of bottles in the bag," Maggie said, indicating by the backpack by Daryl's feet. He fetched one out and took a couple of sips, hoping that they'd get there soon.

The car was stopped in front of the surgery.

The building wasn't secure, the door smashed and hanging precariously. There was no sign of any other groups or walkers.  
Maggie looked at him, waiting for his say-so on whether they headed inside. He carefully made a note of their surroundings, not just the one building.

They'd stopped the car in the car park and it surrounded the three visible sides of the building. The far end of the building was surrounded by a fence. Beyond that, there seemed to be a few small stores. Might be worth checking them out if this went well. Behind them was the road they'd travelled in through which passed a housing estate. Everything was quiet. He checked with Maggie and she nodded at him.

"You good at climbing fences?"

She frowned but nodded. "Why?"

"Walkers come in that door," he pointed to the door in front of them that was broken."Head out that fire exit and climb the fence."

"That's the opposite direction to the car."

"Yeah. Circle round the stores and get back here if it's safe."

"What if it's a herd, a big herd?"

"You'll have to wait until ya lose sight of the walkers and break into the first building ya can."

"And where are you gonna be through all of this?"

"Right behind ya."

His words actually bought a smile to her face. "Okay then, let's do this."

~

The place had been looted.

However they were in luck because it seemed whoever came here was looking for any drugs they could find and the equipment from the maternity section seemed almost untouched, although there was still seemed to be an alarming amount of blood around.

Daryl had found a dead doctor in one of the rooms but he wasn't a walker, just dead. He'd shut the door keeping him from Maggie's view.

He leads the way when they first went in, making sure the areas were clear for her and he pointed out the fire exit, just to make sure she'd find it now they were inside and then waited on guard while she got as much of the stuff as possible. He took a couple of trips back to the car with the stuff they'd collected and listened out for any walkers.

When he went back, Maggie was looking carefully at some books. She looked at him unsure and bit her bottom lip, suddenly looking frightened and unsure. "You think I should bring these?" she asked, holding up some medical books all relating to babies and children. Everything that could go wrong.

He nodded.

Herschel was a vet. He was good but he might be over his head on this one.

She piled a few books onto the desk, trying to pick which would be the best to take. He left her to make the decision, a noise-making him leave the room and check the area again. He made his way down the hallway and heard the sound of a walker shuffling along. He knew the difference between a walker and a human. He carefully made his way to the reception and saw the walker. There was maybe two or three more outside. At least that was all he could see. He quickly and quietly headed back down to Maggie. The fire exit was on this side of the building meaning they'd not need to pass the walkers to leave.

Maggie was still sorting through books when he got there and he made a very quiet whistling sound to get her attention and indicated for her to leave the room now. She grabbed two of the books and made her way to the door. He pointed towards the fire exit, noting that she was looking for the danger.  
She headed towards the fire exit and pushed the bar that opened the door, a shrill alarm sounding as she did so.

"The fuck..." was all Daryl managed to mutter, as he pushed her through the door quickly. He pulled the books from her grip so she could climb without trouble and he threw the books over the fence while he waited for her to get to the top of the fence. As soon as she swung her legs over, he climbed up himself making short work of it.

The first walker reached the fence as he dropped to the ground. "C'mon," he said as they headed towards the other stores.

He'd already noted a gate in the fence way up and from the noise the walkers were making, he guessed there was a few of them. At least more than the three of four he'd been able to see. So they'd be able to follow them but that wasn't a problem as long as they stayed ahead of them. Maggie gathered the books quickly and Daryl kept his crossbow ready to shoot at a moments notice. When she was ready to go, they started towards the stores just ahead of them.

Maggie's scream cut through him as their path towards the stores was cut off by more walkers. Where the fuck had they all come from?

He was stupid to be so relaxed. He should have stayed on guard by the door. He was going to get them both killed. He grabbed her arm, pulling her back from the direction the new flurry of walkers were coming from and pulled her in a different direction. A small patch of grass and more houses beyond it.

"What do we do?" she called as she ran.

"Distance." was all he replied, checking behind himself as he purposely stayed behind her to make sure she stayed safe.

So Maggie ran. Kept going until the moan of the walkers became a little more distant. She was sure they were lost in the twists and turns she'd taken in her haste to lose the walkers but she hoped Daryl was just as good at finding his way through a concrete jungle as he would be an actual jungle.

There were a few walkers still. For some reason, they seemed to be staying around here and Maggie wondered if it were from their old lives. Maybe they all used to live here. Daryl hadn't made any attempt to down any walkers as none had come close enough to be a danger so when an arrow pierced through the skull of a walker ahead of her, she wasn't sure why that walker needed to be downed more than any of the others.

He pulled the arrow out quickly, pulled his knife out and kicked the walker's arm several times as it crunched and broke beneath his boot. He used the knife to severe anything still attaching it to the body and with the arm of the walker in one hand, he used his other to point to a building just ahead.

"Green door. Windows open. That'll get us in and keep the walkers out still."

Maggie wasn't inclined to argue and headed straight for it. "Be careful, dunno if there are walkers inside," he said and she took out a knife of her own, readying it as she climbed inside. Daryl climbed in straight after and then used the walkers arm to smear some of the congealed blood onto the area where he and Maggie had touched the window and then threw the arm away from the building, hoping the walkers wouldn't be able to smell them anywhere near the building. He closed the window, locked it and pulled the blind down quickly.

He turned and Maggie was right behind him. "What are we gonna do?"

"We're gonna go check the place out, make sure it's safe. Make sure all the doors and windows are locked. We might have to wait it out a night, head back in the morning. Need this herd to pass by."

She nodded as they set about securing the building.

~

It was dark out now.

Before they'd lost the light, Daryl had checked the bedrooms and found the one with the easiest escape route for them, just in case. They'd be able to get out the window and there was a easy drop-down onto another roof, meaning they'd not have to break a leg trying to get out.

They'd raided the cupboards for food, having to settle for cold tins of beans but Maggie had found some candy and they ate that afterwards.

Maggie sat alone as Daryl checked the house once more before they decided to get some rest. He was gone a long time and Maggie left the bedroom and made her way to the bathroom to clean up before getting some sleep. She saw Daryl at the bottom of the stairs and by the time she got back, he had reached the top. He'd moved some furniture in front of the door, balanced a few bits of crockery on top so that if something pushed against the door the crockery would break.  
"Just in case," he added and she nodded, feeling a little safer with him here.

There was one bed in the room they'd picked but Daryl wasted no time setting himself up a place to sleep on the floor. He positioned himself so his feet were towards the door, which he'd closed. Crossbow within arms reach. He told her to wake him if she heard anything and if she got up in the night to wake him up first or risk getting shot. With that, he closed his eyes.

~

Merle was mad.

He'd been upstairs. Cleaned himself up and changed his clothes and he could hear Merle raging down there. He paced back and forth, talking loudly, shouting but there was no one else here.

He'd crept downstairs and sat and watched his brother for the longest time before Merle finally noticed him. Eyes hardened at the sight of him and Daryl was scared of what his brother might do.

Merle shook his head. "Not you too, little bro."

And with that, Merle stormed out. He thought he'd done wrong by his brother. Watching him. He didn't know. He didn't know what he'd done and what Merle meant. It wouldn't take long for him to know what Merle had meant with those few words.

Daryl called out after him, called out until he couldn't even see him any more.

That didn't stop him calling though.

"Merle?"

........................

"Daryl!"

A woman's voice. Not his dream. His eyes opened quickly and he took a moment to gather where he was. The prison? No, somewhere better than that. Somewhere with... Carol?  
He turned to the woman who was behind him somewhere and saw Maggie in the darkness, eyes shining in the darkness and a dim outline were all he could make out. He remembered where they were.

"You were dreaming," she whispered into the darkness.

He felt stupidly embarrassed at her having to wake him up over a bad dream. "Sorry," he muttered as he lay back down. He heard her shuffle around on the bed, getting comfortable again and he lay there quietly.  
He wouldn't sleep any more this night.

~

When Maggie woke she was alone.

The morning light was starting to creep in and although it was early, the fact she was alone pushed her to get up.

She headed down the stairs and saw no trace of the bits Daryl had moved in the way of the door last night. She really did start to wonder whether or not he'd left. She didn't think he'd actually leave her and head back alone, but maybe risk getting the car and bringing it back. She didn't have long to worry about such things when she found Daryl sat in the kitchen, sifting through a drawer of the former owner's belongings and bagging anything that might be useful to their group.

"Didn't hear you get up," she said.

He looked up at her through raised eyebrows. "You weren't supposed to."

On the side were some breakfast bars and a couple of discarded wrappers showed Daryl had eaten his, leaving some for Maggie. She ate one, pleased to eat something that was sweet and bad for her, seeing as they concentrated mostly on fresh meat and veg when they were at the farm and usually now it was tinned goods or anything Daryl killed for them. This felt like an indulgence.  
By the time she'd finished Daryl seemed to be done looking through the drawer and was watching her.

"Ready to go?"

"Now?"

He nodded once. "Checked outside and there's no sign of any walkers. Wanna get back as quick as we can so that the others don't worry and try to come to look for us," He explained, as he got up and gathered the bag he'd been adding things too and his crossbow.

"Okay, let me grab my stuff," Maggie said, rushing upstairs to pee quickly and grabbing the books on the way back down.

They encountered little on the way back to the car, a relief to them both.

Daryl took out a couple of stray walkers, silently and efficiently and they were soon back into the relative safety of the car. Both breathed a sigh of relief at the small comfort the car gave them. Something from their group, something almost friendly about it. It made Maggie think of Glenn her Father and sister and Daryl thought of Carol and Rick. But neither said a word and Maggie started up the engine quickly, heading back towards the prison and away from the town they'd been stranded in other night.

"You think they're out looking for us?" Maggie asked, brow creased in a frown.

Daryl considered it before answering. Rick was a careful man. If they were missing, he'd go after him, that much he knew, but he also knew that none of these trips out was easy and that both he and Maggie were more than capable of handling themselves.

"I think we got time before he sends anyone after us."

Maggie seemed content with that answer and they drove in silence again. Daryl was concentrating more on what was outside of the car than what was happening inside, so he missed the way Maggie kept looking towards him, a curious look on her face.

"Can I ask you a question?" she eventually asked.

He looked to her surprised at the request. She seemed to be quite a forward person and asking permission seemed odd. Pondering it more, he guessed that her Father had good manners and to her, he was still a stranger. Besides, being ballsy with Glenn wasn't a big deal. "Sure," he said, addressing her question. Whether he'd answer the question was another matter.

"Who's Merle?"

He went to answer automatically before stopping himself "Where'd you hear about him from? Glenn?"

"No. You said the name in your sleep. If it's too weird or personal, just forget I asked." Maggie said, hoping that if Daryl wasn't okay talking about this guy she'd done enough to stop the rest of the car journey being awful and uncomfortable.

Daryl seemed content with the explanation though and looked back outside the window. "Merle's my brother."

He wasn't forthcoming with anything else and Maggie weighed up her options. The sensible thing to do was leave it alone, but she was curious. Daryl hadn't referred to Merle in the past tense and she wondered if that meant that he was alive and well out there somewhere. Before she spoke again, Daryl looked at her, straight in the eyes intently for just a few moments before turning back away. Her words were lost then, but he seemed to have been found.

"He was with our group. They left him behind in Atlanta because he was... he was being himself. Acting out. Some of us went back to get him but he was gone. Haven't seen him since."

He felt maybe she didn't need to know about the handcuffs and the saw.

"Was Glenn part of it?" She asked, a slight look of horror on her face at the idea.

"He was with the group in Atlanta, but he was off doing Glenn stuff so..." Daryl just shrugged. Not much to say. He felt she was pitying him and he kept staring out the window, hoping she's just forget about Merle.

Wished he could too.

~

No one came home that night.

He was alone throughout the whole night, but at least it was his room, his bed.

When Merle had come back that day, he'd never been so grateful to see his older brother but now he wished Merle were here with him. The idea that Merle was out there somewhere making things right filled him with hope. But he knew the reality.  
Merle wasn't like that.

It was Daddy who came home first.  
Furious that Daryl was in the house. Some woman with him asking who it was and he heard his Daddy lie to her, say it was someone else's kid, a neighbours boy and he'd take him back home. He'd been as kind as he ever was while she watched them leave but once out of her sight he gripped Daryl's arm harshly and all but threw him back in the shed.  
The door was still broken from when Merle had let him out but his Daddy's swift hand to his face told him not to dare leave until he was told he could. Daddy closed the door and propped the bin against it.

~

Arriving back at the prison it was Rick and Glenn who greeted them.

Both relieved to see the pair back safe and well and they briefed them on what had taken them so long making sure they never made too much drama out of the situation.  
Hershel was delighted with the things they'd bought back and set about pouring through the books Maggie had collected. The stress in both Lori and Rick's faces seemed to ease a little at the supplies they had bought.

As Glenn fussed over Maggie, Daryl sought out his own sense of security. It wasn't the same as Glenn and Maggie but it was all he had.  
Carol.

She was on watch and he headed out to sit with her. She never looked surprised when he came out to join her on watch any more. She had at first. She still looked happy to have him keep her company though, even though he never went there to talk, just to be in someone else's company.

She asked about the journey and he told her what had happened, what had kept them.  
He knew she worried about the group when they headed out but it had to be done. Besides from some company, Daryl also came out here for peace.  
Because he wasn't quite ready to go back in there yet. Even though it was inevitable and even if he delayed it for today, tomorrow would bring the reality that the prison was their home now.  
That idea stuck inside him. Painful and unwelcome, he felt a deep-rooted sadness fill him.  
He didn't want it to be like this.

He knew he'd gone too quiet, must be too deep in thought. Carol came close to him and offered him a cup of something. He took it, whatever it was and held it in his hand, but he was drowning in his thoughts and memories. And he knew he wouldn't last long.

He didn't know how much time passed but he knew he'd slept.

No dreams or memories of Merle or his Daddy. He was still tired but not as bad as before. It didn't overtake him like it had been.

He was in the chair inside the tower and he could make out Carol outside the tower on watch still. She'd placed a blanket over him. He wasn't cold but he also wasn't hot with it over him, so he left it where it was.

Carol looked round towards Daryl, seeming to sense him. She smiled towards him and held his stare for a few moments before she gently nodded her head towards the outside, beckoning him to join her. He nodded back at her letting her know he was heading out.

She smiled to him when he finally stood next to her, looking out across the ground around the prison. Their prison. The thought of it made him shudder.

She noticed.

"Are you cold?"

"Nah, 'm fine," he replied.

The silence stretched between them before she spoke again. "You've been quiet. Even for you. Everything okay?" He nodded. Held her gaze, tried to let her see it was true. "You look tired. You should try and get some sleep."

Neither spoke for a while and he was the one to break the silence this time. "I couldn't sleep out there. Jus' kept thinkin' how badly Rick and Lori needed those things for that baby. Imagined Glenn going crazy worrying about Maggie."

"And did you think about me?" Carol almost whispered. She was close to him and he felt her breath against his skin. That was how he knew it was real. And even though he didn't mean to, he knew he tensed up.  
He worried about her enough. Letting her care wouldn't help either of them. He couldn't look her way and his rigid stance only became more awkward and obvious. She stepped away slightly.

"I've come to relieve you, Carol."

T Dog. She stepped further away from Daryl, almost guilty. She smiled a fake smile at T Dog before leaving. Daryl didn't move. "You staying?" T Dog asked.

"Jus' for a little while."

~

He didn't know how long he stayed in the tower with T Dog, just that it was dark when he left.

He couldn't quite remember if he told T Dog he was heading back but he figured he'd work it out when he saw he was gone. Rick, Glenn and Maggie were the only ones still around when he got inside.

Rick asked if everything was okay and he nodded. There was really nothing more to say about it and he headed to the kitchen for food. Rick was right behind him, stepping beside him just as he entered the kitchen area.

"You got a minute?" Rick asked.

Daryl felt wary. For some reason, he felt a little anger surge in him. He felt defensive before Rick had even spoken a word. "What for?"

If Rick noticed Daryl's hostility he didn't mention it. "We've gone through our supplies. I got T-Dog to do an inventory of what we have and it's not enough. What with Lori and the baby, I don't want to risk people when we're needed here the most. So I want a supply run big enough to last us. Through to spring if we can."

Daryl could tell Rick had been thinking about this a while. He had the same manic tone to his voice that he'd used so often since they left the farm. He simply nodded. It didn't seem a bad idea to try and stock up on supplies. "When are we going?"

Rick didn't answer immediately and looked down at the ground for a while before meeting Daryl's gaze. "You're not going."

"What? Whattya mean..."

Rick hadn't expected Daryl to react any differently. He raised his hands to silence the man. "The number of supplies we're getting, I need to take most of the group, but this place and the people I leave behind have to be protected."

"So why don't you stay then?"

"You just went out. You stay this time."

"You're leaving Lori here, right? Surely you should stay."

"Carl's coming out. Lori, Carol and Beth are staying. That's it."

"You think I can't take care of the group?"

"I know you can."

"Then let me go instead of you."

"Look, Daryl... I'm sorry, you've just been... a little erratic lately. I can't send you out."

Erratic? So maybe he hadn't been as discreet as he'd hoped.  
And now he was screwed because Rick wasn't going to relent on this and what could he do? Try and talk Rick out of it somehow? That wasn't likely because Rick knew something was up with him and unless he could come up with some reason why he'd be stuck inside until they decided to return from their jaunt.

'Please don't leave me here'. Daryl scowled at Rick and turned from him, his anger stemming at his own inability to cope and his inability to silence the voice in his head.

Rick reached out and touched Daryl's arm. Daryl wrenched his arm away. "Just leave me alone," he snapped, storming off.

Rick watched Daryl go. It didn't go as bad as he feared it might, but he still hoped that Daryl might have at least understood where he was coming from.

Despite all that, the plan was still going to go ahead.

~

Daryl went to his room, anger simmering still.

He couldn't stand the idea of being in this prison. Locked down while the others roamed free outside. And stuck with three women who barely were able to take care of themselves.

Carol was better but neither Beth nor Lori showed much interest in being able to protect themselves.

He'd be expected to look after those women. Should any other danger come across the prison, he'd be expected to deal with it.

He sat on his bed, brooding somewhat when there was movement at his door. Carol.

She stood there sheepishly, nervously waiting. Not sure whether she'd be welcomed by him or not.

"What?" he barked, anger not having left him.

"Rick spoke to you?"

He just nodded in response. "Rick's right. You shouldn't have to go out every time."

"That's not why he's not sending me out. He doesn't think I'm safe to go or sumthin'"

"Is it that bad staying here with us?" Carol asked. Her voice sounded hurt and her face betrayed that fact.

And he didn't want to hurt her. He got up and moved over to her, stepped so close that he was inches from her and she shrunk back slightly at how close he was to her. He went to speak, but the words failed him.  
And instead of speaking, he just walked away.

~

The shed door opened and the light hurt his eyes.

Daddy was there. He preferred it when Merle let him out because there was something in Merle's eyes that let him know that he was safe.

Daddy swayed. Daddy was drunk.

Daddy was... repulsed. The smell of the shed was bad.

'Clean this mess up,' he shouted. A scrub brush and a bucket of water and bleach were thrust at him from his Daddy's trembling hands and he took them in his own, hands shaking for very different reasons.  
He cleaned the floor of the shed, cleaning away his own waste, repulsed by himself.  
He scrubbed until the floor was clean and his hands stung from the bleach on them. But it was clean.

"Daryl."...............................

He startled awake at the sound of his voice being called. He looked to the door and saw no one there.

"Wha?" he called out but was met with silence.

He made his way to the door and looked around, seeing no one there. He wondered whether Carl was playing some sort of prank on him. The kid never had before, but he was growing up.  
It's not them, it's you. You're fucking crazy.

It was early morning. The light shined through lazily and he figured he might as well check the perimeter of the prison, make sure all was well.

He noted Rick was on watch and made a point of ignoring looking in that direction, still mad at Rick after their earlier discussion.

Rick came up and stopped short of the other man.

Daryl tensed as Rick stood behind him, neither speaking at first. For Rick's part, he was waiting for Daryl to explode with rage, either in words or motion, but nothing came. He stood firm, body rigid and tense but kept silent and still.

"You know, ever since we left the farm... I've owed you so much. Before that even. Sophia... you took care of that. When I was... lost with Carl, you were taking care of Sophia and Carol. And then we lost Dale and after we left, you sometimes seemed to be the only one who was on my side. Not even my wife and son were."

Daryl turned towards Rick, the harsh scowl he'd wore earlier had eased, though he was still guarded. Still so very ready to be hurt and to protect himself.

Rick moved closer, slightly, just a little. "I trust you to take this group out, I really do. I'd trust you with my life. But what I'm trusting you with is more than that Daryl. I'm trusting you to guard this place, to guard the most vulnerable members of the group to keep them safe. I'm trusting you to look after my wife and my unborn baby and I know that I can take this group out of here and come back and I know that they'll be safe."

Daryl had softened, Rick's words reasonable and reassuring. He wanted to fight it, wanted to argue with it, anything but staying here because he wasn't sure Rick would come back to find everything okay but the alternative meant telling him why, telling him he was weak as fuck and this place was driving him crazy and Rick needed him. Fucking needed him.

And it settled in him, the decision, because he knew he was a coward and he needed to keep his secrets safely locked away where no one would ever see them. So he nodded. He agreed.  
He'd stay here, locked inside hell while Rick took the rest of the group out and he'd babysit the others.

Rick smiled, thanked him, his hand on his shoulder and he started speaking, but all Daryl heard was Merle's laughter in his ears. Mocking him.  
Rightfully so too.

~

Rick and the others poured over a route to get to the hospital.

They found a way that would take them through a small town, where they hoped to get other supplies, like clothing for everyone.  
Maggie had collected everyone sizes, hoping to be able to find a few more item of clothing for everyone to see them through winter. It wasn't priority but if they were going to try and stay inside throughout winter as much as possible, they may as well be prepared.

They planned a two-day journey, but someone opened their mouths and suggested they'd be safer if they weren't rushing and they ended up planning the trip over four days. It seemed insane and Daryl silently thought that maybe they were all crazier than he was. Four days for a supply trip?

If he thought that was bad when Rick told him that he didn't want them to leave the prison at all while they were away, well it certainly made things worse.

Yet somehow, Daryl stayed silent, nodded his head as though he thought it was a great idea. The thought of arguing the point just didn't seem worth it and he stood, nodding stupidly every time Rick made another dumb suggestion.

The plan was for the prison to look deserted. Hope no one came by. There was a bunch of things he wanted them to do and he let the women take care of the details, something about moving rooms, staying out of sight and having no contact with anyone unless absolutely necessary.

And soon enough they were heading out. Leaving the prison. Leaving him behind.

~

He thought he'd dream of the shed but he didn't.

It was a dream, not a nightmare. Not a trip reliving his past, he was self-aware this time, all too sure that this was just a dream and he was merely a viewer of what happened, never mind that it was still as true to him as the shed and everything else ever was.

But this was different, something else.

He was at school, drawing, writing something and someone he didn't know came in and whispered to his teacher. He watched them as the teacher set his eyes on him and he quickly looked back down to his paper, kept his pencil moving even though the work he was doing was merely scribbles now.

It made no difference though.

'Dixon', his teacher called out and he felt himself flush a hunker down in his seat a little as the other kids looked at him, stared as the teacher indicated for him to come forward. The chair screeched against the floor as he walked towards the front of the class.

The teacher pointed to the other adult in the room, a short woman who he thought was the secretary but he wasn't certain.

"You need to come with me," she said.

She leads the way and Daryl traipsed behind her until he was in a small room."Wait here," she said and she left the door open as she left him waiting there.

The next moment, Merle was stepping into the room. But it was Merle as he'd last seen him, an adult and he seemed to shrink in his presence. But he didn't feel fear, after all, he was still aware that this was just a dream, just his crazy fucked up mind doing whatever the hell it wanted to.

Merle handed him a small piece of paper and he opened it. Daryl knew what it was, of course, it was a memory after all. A distorted version of what had happened but he knew what the note was about. He opened it. On the piece of paper, it had $250 x2 and he felt the confusion that he knew he'd felt back then about what that meant and he looked to Merle for answers. They were all on that piece of paper. A scribbled note about leaving them and not coming back. "Stupid bitch owes money and has left before some fuck comes to collect it,".

~

Daryl lay there in bed.

He'd woke from his dream with the same dread he'd had that first night without his Ma being there.

Daddy didn't care about her going, just the money. He swore a lot about how she'd managed to spend that much and how she'd been so calm the morning she'd left. He'd hated her.

Daryl had to shake his head to get himself out of that place.

Daryl made his way to the others, sat with them silently. Carol talked quietly to the other women about what they should eat that day. She tried to include Daryl but he wasn't interested in that, he'd eat whatever she prepared. Lori talked about how she ached and Beth offered a massage later on and Daryl realised how much women could chatter on about mindless shit and not even realise they were doing it.

He managed to leave without anyone even noticing. He didn't want to go back to his room, even though the idea that he could entertain himself with some maintenance on the crossbow would be the reason to be in there, but he walked to the deeper recesses of the prison. The darker more isolated areas. The places they never went to.  
It was safe here, he was sure of that, they'd been thorough when making this their permanent home but there was nothing nice about this place.

This area of the prison, this area more than anywhere else had seen chaos. There was blood, in puddles on the floor, splattered on walls. Water pooled on the floor in some areas where pipes had burst or been damaged, the smell was unpleasant and there was a coldness that wasn't just down to the temperature here.  
And yet he chose to be here. Not in the comfortable living areas they had, not sitting with the people in the group, not even going into his damn cell and sitting on his cot, he picked the nastiest place to be, a place no one else wants to be, he doesn't even want to be here but he was there anyway.

But being here gave him one thing he wanted.

To truly be alone.

Hours passed.

He wasn't thinking of anything until he heard the footsteps echoing around and then he couldn't stop himself worrying. How long had he been here? Wasn't anything wrong? Were the others back?

He felt something like fear creep in him and he squashed the feeling away as the sound of the footsteps stopped at the door.

He was sat in one of the empty cells deep within the prison. He had no idea how she'd found him but she'd done it.

Carol stood there looking at him carefully. She seemed a little wary. "Daryl, there's a problem."

Carol didn't say much about what was happening.

She didn't need to.

The pair of them made their way back to the others and found both Lori and Beth watching through one of the windows, Lori using a pair of binoculars. When he stepped up next to her, Lori handed him the binoculars and pointed towards a gate. "It looks like a little girl."

Daryl took a quick look before handing the binoculars back to Lori. He couldn't tell whether the girl was a walker or not and he knew if she wasn't, he couldn't leave her out there. The words from Rick came back to him though, about keeping these women safe and he knew he had to do something.

"I'm gonna take a look. You all stay locked inside."

He didn't really expect them all to be so compliant. And he didn't expect Beth to rush off to get his crossbow and bring it back to him. He headed out making sure the others were safely locked in as he walked across to the fence.

Daryl walked quickly across the grass. He could almost feel the eyes of the others back in the prison watching him. He didn't slow until he was just short of the fence.

It was a little girl, both of her hands clutched at the wire of the fence. Her head was down, her hair dropping over her face and he couldn't see her features, tell if she was alive or not.

She wasn't making any noise, didn't look up at the sound of his approach.

"Kid?" He said, quietly as he got a little closer. She seemed to move slightly but didn't lookup.

Daryl looked past her to the grounds outside the prison. Something was there and as he focused on it, the sound started to filter through. Walkers.

It didn't sound like many, but if she wasn't a walker then what chance did she have?

"You hungry, kid?" Daryl tried again and hoped that this time, the thought of food might be too tempting for her not to pay attention to him.

That's when she started to look up. Head slowly looking up to him. Her face was pale, eyes blue and he started to think she was a walker until her lips twitched in what might be a smile, something he didn't see from walkers. She looked nervously behind her before setting her eyes back on him. "Help?"

"Stay there, 'm gonna come to get ya."

But he never got to her.  
The next sound he heard was a gunshot and he found himself looking up at the sky as he tried to make sense of what just happened.

~

"What just happened?" Beth asked the first of the women to find her voice.

"Is he dead?" Carol asked, voice hushed.

"I..." Lori held the binoculars firmly in her grasp, watching the prone figure on the ground. It was just too hard to tell where they were.

"I'm going out to him," Carol said.

"You can't!" Lori said, grabbing hold on Carol's arm.

"We can't leave him out there."

"Someone was watching him. And if we go out there, they'll shoot us all," Beth said.

Carol looked to Lori, wanting her to change her mind, but she saw the resolve in the other woman, knew that she was thinking rationally and she conceded, feeling helpless and fearing for Daryl.

~

"Carl?"

Rick walked carefully over to where his son was standing in the doorway. Carl's back was to him, and he didn't respond to his father's call.

When Rick was a few steps behind his son, he gently called his name again, this time drawing the boys attention. "What's wrong?"

Carl looked a little worried. "I thought I heard something."  
Rick stepped up beside Carl. The others were in the warehouse, loading what they could onto carts to take out to the cars. Rick and Carl were on watch, T Dog, covered another door on the other side of the large warehouse. Rick studied the shop floor and heard no sound, saw no movement. But he trusted his boy. The others were still quickly checking through boxes for anything useful to them, things that were vital.

"Dad, can we go soon? Back to Mom?"

And there was something in Carl's tone, in his eyes that frightened Rick. And he too wanted to get back to the prison as soon as he could.

~

Ann watched in horror as the man on the other side of the fence hit the ground.

As soon as the gun had fired, she'd moved from where she'd been hiding, stepping out so that Suzy could see her. The two men pushed the child aside as they reached the fence and she heard them start to argue. Something about the keys and not reaching the body.

But she didn't care about them, she just held out her arms and waited for Suzy to come to her.

Suzy wasn't hers. When this all started, when she'd fled she'd spotted the girl alone in the street looking terrified and she couldn't leave her.

They'd lasted a long time hiding out in a house in a quiet neighbourhood but then these men had found them.

They'd use Suzy as bait if they saw survivors. Draw them in. She was a little girl. Harmless and innocent. And from what she'd heard, they'd wanted this prison for some time. They'd seen the cars leave and had hoped it would be their chance, but the gates were still locked and they didn't have the tools needed to get in. Then they saw a faint light one night and they knew they had a chance.

There plan was never to kill those who'd come for Suzy because they wanted a hostage, concerned more of those living inside and the need to bargain their way in.

Suzy shivered in her arms and she knew it wasn't just from the cold. The dead things were getting closer, she could hear their faint moans steadily growing. She wondered if the men had a plan now, the arguing had calmed somewhat and they were discussing a strategy yet she could hear what they said.

Ann rubbed Suzy's back, trying to comfort her the best she could and when she looked back again, one of the men was standing over her. "Back to the van," he said. She tried to see what was going on behind him, but he blocked her view so she followed his instructions, standing up and picking Suzy up with her, heading to the van.

When they got to the van, he opened the back for them and she crawled across to the blanket that was on the floor and sat on it, Suzy wrapped in her arms.

She wanted to ask what they were doing but was too afraid to speak. He was checking his gun. The dead things were still coming, they weren't far off and he was checking his ammo, seeing what he had left to kill them with.

But she was wrong about that.  
He was checking the gun to see if he had enough ammo to kill them.  
And Suzy was dead in her arms before she even realised that the gun was no aimed at her and the trigger was being pulled.

~

Daryl's shoulder was throbbing in pain.

The crossbow was just out of his reach, his fingertips brushed against it, but he didn't want to move for it. He needed to listen, to observe.

He couldn't see what was happening. Heard a couple of people arguing, a girl crying and eventually the talking calmed down. They thought Daryl was knocked out and he was determined to keep it that way. One of them was going to get the woman and the kid back to the van and the guy still here was going to drag Daryl over to him and snag the keys from his belt.

Daryl hoped they stuck with that plan because it sounded a lot like it was just the two men and they were about to split up. He waited and listened.

The guy left to move him closer grunted with effort for a bit before cursing to himself. Whatever he was trying to do wasn't going well from the sound of it.

The sound of two shots firing out stopped Daryl playing dead as his mind focused on one thing. The woman and child. If they were planning on getting in here, why would they take them away? He raised his head and the man at the fence was turned away, towards where the shots had come from and Daryl pulled a gun out from his belt before the man in front of him had even turned back around. He pulled the trigger without wasting another moment.

He regretted having to use the gun. It gave the other man the opportunity to know something was wrong but he knew the crossbow would be too heavy to lift with just one arm and he'd likely have missed his shot. The second man was cautious and never came out from the woods enough for him to get a good clear shot. He saw the body, eyes went quickly to Daryl and then he retreated, heading off back into the woods.

Daryl heard the van start up and drive away.

With the adrenaline starting to ebb away, Daryl could only think about what he'd bought on them all.


	2. Chapter 2

Some of the walkers followed the retreating sound of the van, others headed to the fence.

Daryl considered killing them, but if he shot them he'd draw more to them. He wanted to get back in, locked away from what was out here and hide the others somewhere safe in the depths of the prison because it was his job to keep them safe. He'd promised Rick he would and he felt himself falling short of that task right now.

Lori waited by the door as he approached it.

He expected them all to be stood there, but he figured they were just beyond the doorway. When he was close enough, Lori spoke. "Are you okay?"

He was wearing a dark blue shirt and the blood couldn't be seen on it, he was grateful for that but he could feel it running down his chest and back anyway. He didn't answer her, just concentrated on walking to the prison, relieved to get inside. She closed the door just behind him and he stopped to rest, leaning against the wall.

The others weren't in the room, something that surprised him. At least until he looked towards Lori. Her eyes had sought out his injury and then he noticed that they'd readied themselves for him to come back injured. "How bad is it?" she asked him.

"Went straight through. Probably for the best, least, there's no bullet to get out."

Lori nodded a little at that. "Well, I'm no Hershel, but at least let me clean the wound and put something on it, okay?"

He didn't want her too, but then he thought that if it wasn't Lori, it would be Carol and he didn't want her to do it. So he nodded.

Lori cut away his shirt from his injured arm and wiped away the blood with warm water. She taped gauze over the wound, both exit and entrance points, it would be too awkward to wrap a bandage around it.  
Lori quickly cleared up the few bits she'd used and Daryl mumbled a thank you before leaving to clean himself up properly.

He went to his room, his cell, his mind on the man that got away. Letting him getaway was a huge mistake and one that might cost them all. There might be a group, they might come back. They might ambush Rick and the others when they returned and he couldn't do a thing about it.

Daryl was unbuttoning his shirt when she stepped in behind him.  
He was too caught up in his thoughts that he didn't hear her. It wasn't until he had his shirt undone and went to struggle out of it that she made her presence felt, reaching for the shirt to help him out of it.

He spun around when he realised he wasn't alone, Carol standing there calmly.

"I was just trying to help. You're hurt. You shouldn't be straining too much, you'll make your injury worse."

"I'm fine," he said, angry at her invasion of his privacy. "You need to get out. Now!" He barked at her.

The hurt look in her eyes didn't even register to him, as she turned and left him alone.

* * *

Lori, Carol and Beth were preparing a meal when Daryl joined them.

He wore a serious look on his face. "We need to move."

"What?" Lori asked.

"We need to move. Now."

"Why, what's happened?" Carol asked.

He glared at her darkly and she didn't know if it was because of her attempt to help him earlier or because she was asking questions when he wanted them all to be moving. "That guy could have an army. If he comes back and we're all here they'll get to us in no time. We need to move. Get deeper into the prison. Just in case."

Lori's hand settled onto her bump, protectively and she shared a look with Carol and Beth. "You think they'll come back?" she asked, worried.

"Let's just move," Daryl said, hoping to get the women into motion.

They didn't question him further.

* * *

Daryl and Carol moved the majority of Lori's stuff for her as they moved deeper into the prison.

Except for Carol's trip into these depths when she'd searched for Daryl, the other women had never been so far into the prison before. It was unpleasant, a place Rick had never intended his wife to see.

Eventually, they'd planned to clean it up but it wasn't a priority. They could do that in the winter when they'd settled in properly. Supplies were the priority right now.

The cells here were more basic, smaller, more confined and Carol wondered aloud if they should share rooms. No cell had room for all the women and they didn't want to leave anyone alone, but Beth told the others to share, thinking it's better for Lori. Carol wasn't sure about climbing up onto a top bunk.

Daryl headed back to get the food the women had been preparing and on his way back he locked every door he could that would hold up any intruders getting to them.

When he got back to the others, he found the women huddled together in one room looking frightened, vulnerable.  
 _Fuck_ , he thought. All he'd managed was to scare them.

When he was clear of the prison, he stopped the van and pulled the two bodies out, left them on the side of the road and carried on driving.

* * *

The plan was fucked.

He wondered why he listened to Ben's ideas sometimes. He scoffed at himself as he realised he wouldn't have that problem any more. But now he had nothing and no one. No sweet, innocent looking child and no harmless old woman either.

But the plus side was that he was alone now. And maybe that gave him better chances to be taken in by a new group.

* * *

As soon as they finished eating, Daryl left the women.

He'd scared them, made them worry and now he needed to do something about it. He told them he was going to get some more blankets for them, but as soon as he was through the first door and had it locked he hesitated.

They had food, water. Facilities. There'd be enough blankets, he was sure of that.

"What's wrong?" Carol asked, her brow creased with worry at his lack of movement. He searched her face for a moment.

"Look after 'em. I'll be back as soon as I can."

"Back? Where are you going? Carol asked.

He turned though and didn't answer her. Heading to the next door.  
He could still hear them calling after him as he increased the gap between them. All he could think about was finding that guy and making sure he didn't come back.

* * *

It seemed like days that the women were locked away in prison.

They had enough to keep them sustained, but rationed themselves carefully, unsure how long it would be before Daryl came back.

They could hear footsteps and the keys rattling, echoing down the halls before they saw anything.

They waited by the door, eager to get out. When Daryl seemed to be taking his time to get there, it was Carol who broke the silence.

"Daryl? Come on, let us out now. We're tired of being locked in here."

The noises halted and Carol and Lori shared a concerned look. Could anyone else get in here?

The keys started to rattle again and the footsteps were quicker and then from the shadows, Rick appeared. He unlocked the door before he said anything. The women shuffled out quickly, pleased to be out.

"Your back? Did everything go okay?" Lori asked.

Rick replied with a quick nod. "Nothing to worry about. What's going on here? Why are you locked in there? Where's Daryl?"

"He's in the other part of the prison?"

Rick shook his head. "Come on. Let's head back to the others and you can tell us what happened."

Rick and the others had been relieved to get back safely to the prison.  
Their relief was short-lived however when they couldn't find anyone.

The huge amount of supplies they'd manage to gather had been marred by the strange and disturbing events they'd returned too.

Lori and filled them in on what had happened with the little girl, Daryl getting shot and how he'd freaked out and made them move deeper in the prison before seeming to vanish.

The group had split into three search parties and scoured the prison before they could conclude he was nowhere inside.

Rick and T Dog searched the fence, making sure it hadn't been breached and all they'd found was the blood from where Daryl had lay after getting hit.

"Whattya think, man?" T Dog asked as they headed back to the prison.

"I don't know. Part of me thinks Daryl acted perfectly rationally, getting them safer and deeper into the prison and the other part of me thinks where the hell is he if he's so damn rational?" Rick shook his head and stopped walking. T Dog stopped too, watching the other man. "Shouldn't have left him here. he said he didn't wanna stay behind."

"There's no way anyone would have guessed this would happen. besides, the man might be out there, setting traps or somethin' round the prison. He can handle himself," T Dog reassured.

Rick sighed and nodded. Daryl had seemed better when he was away from the prison than when he was inside it. "I need to know what's happening, what he's thinking about."

"Maybe if you talk to him outside. Where he doesn't feel trapped, maybe he'll open up a bit."

"If I knew how to track I'd be out there looking for him already,"

"Let us sort out a watch. Have someone on the lookout for Daryl at all times."

Rick nodded and the pair headed back to the prison.

* * *

Daryl stirred slowly.

At first, he thought he was in prison, it was dark and a little claustrophobic but as his mind cleared he realised where he was.

The van held the distinctive smell of blood and it was as he began to sit up he saw the stuff covered his hands.

And then he saw the body and he remembered.

Remembered how he followed the tracks the van had left in the grass surrounding the prison and followed it until he found the vehicle.

He thought it was abandoned to start with and had been as surprised as the man inside when he opened the rear of the van and had met the business end of a gun.

The trigger was pulled and it clicked and Daryl realised he was spared by someone who wanted him to get this bastard before he hurt his people and he wasted no time in springing forward, knife raised and watching the blood as it splattered as he struck the man repeatedly, losing himself in a rage of violence. And when the anger started to fade and his rage simmered, he noticed how dark it was outside and that was when he stayed the night.

He pushed the body outside the van and faded into the darkness.

As he looked at himself now, he could only imagine what the hell he would look like to anyone who saw him. He was sticky with the blood that had seeped into his clothes as he lay in it.

He was relieved that the women were locked away- he could clean himself up before they saw him, and that was something.

He opened the door to the van and almost stepped into the three walkers that were feasting on the remains of the guy he's pushed outside the van after he'd killed him.

Their attention drawn to him, Daryl panicked and pushed himself backwards, slipping a little on the blood that pooled on the floor of the van.

He reached for his crossbow and quickly downed the first walker that was lunging for him. He unsheathed his knife and after getting his balance he quickly took down the other two walkers.

He checked his surrounding before climbing out of the van and was relieved to see no other walkers nearby.

He pulled the bolt out of the first walker and wiped the gore off of it before reloading the crossbow. Knowing he needed to get back to the others, Daryl headed back towards the prison.

* * *

Rick spotted Daryl coming before the sun began to set.

The others were inside and when he saw the state Daryl was in, he was glad for that. He raced down towards the man, appalled by the amount of blood that seemed to cover him. He couldn't help but think of the movie Carrie.

"Are you alright?" Rick asked as soon as he was close enough.

Daryl nodded. "I'm fine. Ain't a scratch on me," Daryl assured him.

"Lori said you got shot."

"Well that's still there. Nuffin' else though." Daryl said before mumbling "That ain't a scratch anyway, it's a fuckin' hole."

They walked most of the way to the prison before Rick stopped Daryl. "Look, what the hell happened?" Rick asked, anxious.

"Lori told you," Daryl said.

"Afterwards. why did you leave?"

"I thought it was best I find that guy in case he was part of a bigger group. You think that's crazy?"

Rick studied Daryl for a moment before shaking his head. "No, I think it's a good call. That's a hell of a lot of blood though" Rick said. He didn't really like the idea of having Daryl walk into a room full of people looking like that. Daryl didn't say anything to the comment so Rick gave him a brief pat on the shoulder before speaking again. "Okay, stay here a sec. Let me just clear at least the women out the way and then you can get yourself cleaned up.

* * *

Daryl used one of the prison showers to clean himself up after getting back inside.

He threw his stained clothes by his feet, hoping to wash the majority of the blood off of them too as he was cleaning himself. He took off the spoilt bandage that covered his wounded shoulder and threw it to one side.

He mostly just stood under the cold spray, letting it wash away the blood and grime. He rubbed a little at the blood on his hands, tried to make them clean.

"Daryl?"

He whipped his head around at the voice and shut the water off, grabbing for one of the few towels they had, wrapping it around his waist and hoping it wasn't Carol coming down here to find him.

"What?" he called.

No one answered and he cursed pushing a hand through his soaked hair stopping it from dripping in his eyes. He pulled his dirty socks back onto his damp feet and pulled the boots on, leaving his clothes in the shower to collect later.  
Heading outside the shower block he looked down the hallways and as he whipped his head to the right he spotted a figure darting behind the wall. A small child, Carl he guessed. Why the fuck was he down here, messing around like this? Did his parents just refuse to watch the damn kid?

Shaking his head in annoyance, he headed after the boy, ready to drag him to the others.

* * *

"Shouldn't Daryl be back by now?" Carol asked, looking worried.

Rick looked to Hershel, unsure. He'd spoke privately to the other man about Daryl's weird behaviour recently and Hershel said he had little to go on. He too had seen Daryl act out a little recently, but nothing that made him worry. Maybe he was just tired, burnt out from the constant fighting.

"I'm sure he's just fine," Hershel reassured her. "He'll come back here when he's ready."

Carol looked at him and frowned. "I'm going to make sure," she started and began to walk away.

"No, no Carol," Rick called, stopping his in her steps.

She looked at him with a look of alarm.

"There's something you're not telling us, isn't there? she accused. Her eyes narrowed in suspicion before grow wide with shock. "Oh my God, he's bit, isn't he?"

"No! Of course not!" Rick said quickly.

"Carol, it's best that we just leave Daryl to the space he requires. You know how he is, he likes time alone. If there were any concern with how injured he was, I assure you I'd be down there myself already."

Hershel's words were calm and reassuring and she found herself nodding in agreement. She trusted them to know best.

Lori walked up beside her and looked to the other men. "Have you seen Carl?"

* * *

Daryl barely noticed how cold the prison seemed to be, the deeper in her got, the colder it seemed to be.

Yet he couldn't go back. Not with Carl wandering around down here.

The boy kept far enough ahead of him, leading him deeper into the prison and he wondered if he'd remember his way back.

He shivered slightly at the idea of getting lost down here but he pushed on until he reached a door at the end of the hallway. Large double doors, one swinging gently letting him know that Carl went in there moments ago.  
He sucked in a shaky breath knowing he'd have to follow the boy and made his way forward until he was close enough to push the door open. He peeked inside the dark room and waited for his eyes to adjust. There were windows, set high, that offered some light. He stepped fully into the room and looked around for any movement. Carl had to be in there somewhere.

The room was a large eating area for the cons and he ducked down, imagining the kid to be hidden under one of the tables. He scanned the room carefully and saw no trace of him.

"Chasing fucking shadows," he muttered to himself.

He turned to leave and head back to the showers, collect his clothes and then return to the others.

"Daryl!" the voice whispered behind him again and he spun back around.

"What?" he demanded, voice echoing around the room. He scanned the room again carefully. There was no one there and he knew it. "Stay the fuck away from me!"

* * *

Rick slipped away from the others when they were preoccupied with Lori's bump, and the kicking the baby was doing.

He headed down to the shower block and found the water still running. A dry towel was left on the floor and the only trace that Daryl had been here were the wet bootprints that came from the shower and headed out of the room.

Rick started to follow them and almost walked straight into Carl. "What are you doing down here?" Rick asked, angry but relieved he'd found his boy.

"I think some thing's wrong with Daryl." Carl explained. Rick felt that might be an understatement right about now but nodded him to encourage the boy to continue. "I was just looking round down here and I heard him talking to someone. I followed him and he's just... he's just in a cell talking crazy to himself," Carl explained. Rick could tell the whole incident had startled his boy and nodded. "I-I tried to talk to him but it's like he couldn't hear me."

"Okay, go back to the others and stay there. I'm gonna go find Daryl. Ask Hershel to come to the showers, okay? I might need him."

Carl nodded his understanding and left quickly.

* * *

Daryl sat on the floor in the cell, water had puddled around him from his damp skin.

It was cold and he shivered but he couldn't move. He could hear the voice keep talking to him, but it wasn't real, he knew that. There was no one there, so he ignored it. He just concentrated of breathing, listened to the sound it made in the quiet room. He had his arms wrapped around his knees, head resting on them as he sat there, not really thinking because that didn't seem to be working out too well for him recently.

The door may have creaked and he might have heard footsteps come towards him, but he didn't look. If he did, it's just as likely there'd be no one there, so he kept his head pressed into his arms, closed his eyes against the insanity that seemed to be closing in around him.

_

Rick found Daryl in one of the cells.

He already knew they'd have to do something because this wasn't working out for Daryl. It was destroying him. He'd discuss that later, with the others. For now he needed to get Daryl back with him and try to keep him there.

He briefly hoped that Carl had managed to be discreet about this whole thing. He hoped to God no one else tried to come out and help him because they really couldn't trust anything that Daryl might do. So far he hadn't shown any violence at all, at least to the group. He'd stayed protecting them and for that, Rick was grateful.

He carefully made his way over to the older man and crouched down beside him. "Daryl?" He got no reaction and he hadn't really expected one. He lay one hand onto the other man's shoulder and felt him tense up at the touch. "It's Rick. Listen, I'm gonna... I'm gonna help you up, okay?" he spoke softly and slowly before he hooked Daryl under the arm and helped haul the man to his feet. He felt his body shivering slightly in the damp clothes he still wore.

Rick looked to Daryl for any sign that he was aware of where he was and who he was with and saw nothing in them. He carefully touched Daryl's face with his hand and moved his head slightly, making their eyes meet. He saw it. A hint of recognition in those blue eyes.

"Hey, it's gonna be okay," Rick promised, his other hand grabbing the other side of Daryl's face like if he held him with both hands he'd have to believe the words he said.

Warm hands on his skin seemed to drag Daryl back to reality.

Rick was there suddenly and the next thing he knew he was leading him somewhere. As they took slow steps, Rick would occasionally turn to him and say a few encouraging words and Daryl would stare blankly after him.

Everything seemed to just happen before he even realised it and even though Rick kept talking things through with him, he didn't seem to be able to respond, couldn't do anything but let them do what they wanted.

Rick seemed to leave momentarily and the next minute he was back with clothes and then a towel was wrapped around his shoulders and he realised they were undressing him and he couldn't think how they were doing it when he'd already showered. He watched as Hershel set aside the pair of sodden trousers and used another towel to dry his cold damp skin before he struggled to slip on a fresh pair of trousers. He shuddered involuntarily and he felt Rick's arm tighten their hold around him.

Rick made sure he kept talking to Daryl the whole time he and Hershel changed his clothes for him.

He wanted to make sure things stayed calm and controlled and had strictly forbidden anyone else from coming down to the showers unless he came and asked them to.

Hershel was busy pulling on Daryl's trousers when he felt Daryl shudder in his loose grip. He was holding the towel around Daryl's shoulders with one arm and he tightened the grip, reassuring him quietly that everything was okay and he wasn't going to let anything happen to him. Once Hershel had Daryl's trousers on and pulled on some dry socks and Daryl's other pair of boots, Rick loosened the hold on him and pulled the towel away slightly, so it hung off of Daryl's shoulders.

Hershel quickly undone all of the button on Daryl's sleeveless shirt and Rick took the towel away so Hershel could slip it from the other man's arms.

Once he had completed that, Daryl still wore the damp vest which Hershel opted to cut away. It would be easier than trying to communicate with Daryl right now and get him to cooperate.

"Okay, Daryl you did great there," Rick said.

"I'd like to give him a quick shot. Make sure that wound doesn't get infected," Hershel said as he started rummaging through a bag he'd bought with him with some medical supplies in it. "Then I'll redress that wound," Hershel added and Rick nodded. He'd discarded the towel by now, but still kept a grip on Daryl, for comfort more than anything. The man's silent, the trance-like state concerned him.

Hershel injected the needle into Daryl's arm and it didn't take long for the effect to take hold. Rick had known Hershel planned to sedate Daryl, something they talked briefly about and Rick agreed it was the best thing for the moment, until they could get Daryl back to his cell, let his body and mind rest and then see what the were dealing with afterwards.

As Daryl began to slump, Rick held Daryl tightly until Hershel came over and grabbed Daryl's other arm. They half carried half dragged Daryl back to the cellblock where the others were waiting.

Rick was surprised when they returned to the cellblock and found the others were elsewhere. At least until they reached Daryl's cell where they found Lori, quickly straightening up Daryl's bedsheets. It was clear she'd just changed the bedding and she smiled to Rick and Hershel as they struggled into the small room with the unconscious man between them.

They carefully lay him down on the bed before Lori passed Rick the fresh blankets she'd also bought in.

"How's he doing?" she asked once he was settled.

"We thought it best to sedate him. Let him rest for a few days with no interruptions. That can have an amazing impact on the body and mind," Hershel said.

Lori smiled and nodded slightly. "The others worried. I asked T Dog to keep everyone busy preparing dinner and sorting supplies out. Better than sitting and waiting."

Rick nodded. "We're gonna have to discuss it though. All of us. I don't even know if we're gonna be able to stay here... "

"Let's not make any rash decisions, Rick." Hershel warned.

"You can't think that some sleep is going to make that much difference?"

Hershel looked down to the sleeping man before indicating that they should take the conversation elsewhere. They walked down the hallway before stopping again. "If I'm honest, I think the problem is this prison and Daryl's past. He doesn't want to be here, that much is clear but he won't just leave us. He belongs with the group, he's part of it and he can't just walk out."

"So?" Rick pressed.

"Something about this prison takes him back to a bad place where God only knows what happened. We either need to leave the prison or make Daryl comfortable enough here that he can live in this place."

Rick shook his head. "I don't see how we can."

"Maybe Carol can talk to him? She's got quite close to him," Hershel suggested.

"He's not the best at opening up," Rick said, sighing at the situation.

"I might have an idea," Lori said. "If I made up a list for a supply run, Maggie and Glenn or T Dog or whoever could get this and... it might just work."

"What kind of idea?"

Lori smiled. "Leave it with me. I'm gonna run by Carol, see what she thinks first."

Rick shrugged knowing they had nothing much to lose. "Okay."

* * *

Hershel kept Daryl sedated for two full days, having enough medical supplies to look after him properly and not risk his health.

Lori discussed her idea with Carol and the other woman seemed to think it was a good idea. They kept the others out of the loop though, deciding they'd wait and see if it their plans worked out.

T Dog and Glenn went to get the supplies and came back without any incident.

While some of the group worked on the secret project, Hershel, Rick and Carol would take turns watching over Daryl.

Hershel told Rick it might be best if he sat with Daryl alone when he came round. Rick agreed but stayed close in case he was needed, but only a few cells away.

"Dad!" Carl called as he came up by his father. "You have to come and see what Mom did for Daryl," he insisted.

"I was going to wait here in case Hershel needed me," Rick explained.

"S'okay man, I'm gonna wait instead," T Dog said, who looked exhausted but happy.

Rick nodded and followed behind Carl. He lead him to the door that lead to the exercise yard. It was an area that they'd mostly kept away from, no real reason to use it. When Rick looked out to the yard he saw how the group had transformed it.

From the door he stood at, there was wooden paving laid across almost half the yard. Against one wall, they'd set up a huge tent, one that looked to have two bedrooms and a living area. Daryl could stand up in the tent, keep all his things together, have his own space while still being safe with the group and from walkers.

Over the top of the tent was a gazebo. Rick was amazed at the lengths the group had gone too. Lori came out of the tent, and smiled in his direction. "This is amazing," he said to her.

"T Dog saw the flooring and thought it would be better than having this all set out on concrete," she smiled as she looked at the tent. "You know, I said go large with the tent, I didn't think they'd go this large," she chucked at it.

Rick smiled back as he headed over to her and looked at the tent. There was a cot set up in the tent so Daryl wouldn't be sleeping on the floor and it looked like they'd found some great quality sleeping bags. Daryl could be completely self-sufficient out here. There was a small gas cooker, a kettle, his own pots and plates. There was even a toilet tent set up further away from Daryl's tent but under the gazebo still.

Indicating to the gazebo, Lori explained "I thought if it were raining he might hate being stuck in his tent. This way, he's still got some freedom and can do what he wants. And of course, he can always just come inside whenever he feels he wants too."

"This was a great idea," Rick commented as he wrapped his arm around Lori's waist.

"I just thought of the tent. Once I told Carol and then Glenn, Maggie and T Dog were in on it, they had so many better plans and well, you can see from what they bought back that they went to town with it.

"I was actually dreading today, what with Hershel letting Daryl wake up. I think maybe this will help him a little."

Lori nodded. "We all hope so," she assured him, planting a gentle kiss on his lips.

* * *

Hershel used the guise of checking Daryl's shoulder wound to check how the man was doing.

He seemed a little better than when they'd bought him back here days ago. He could tell the man was still struggling with the after-effects of being sedated and was drowsy but he was calm and was at least answering Hershel's questions.

When he finished up, Hershel told Daryl to sit tight while he went and found Rick and Hershel took his turn seeing what the others had been up to in the yard.

Hershel couldn't help notice a slightly happier demeanour that Rick had as the two men passed by.

* * *

Daryl shivered slightly as Hershel left the room and pulled the blankets from the bed over himself as he waited for Rick.

It didn't take long for the former deputy sheriff to arrive. There was some small talk before Rick cut to the chase. "Listen, I don't know what's going on with you and I know you don't wanna talk about it. With Lori's condition, leaving the prison is just out of the question..." Rick started before Daryl interrupted.

"Okay, you don't have to say it. I know what you're gonna say and it's fine,"

Rick furrowed his brow slightly. "What am I gonna say?"

"I need to go. And I do. I can't stay here," Daryl confessed quickly.

"No, no, no." Rick shook his head. "No one wants you to leave."

"I can't stay here," Daryl protested.

Rick nodded at that. "Yeah, I get that," he agreed.

"Well, I don't get what the answer is then, Rick."

"Come with me and I'll show you."

* * *

Rick had opened the door for Daryl and let him see what they'd done alone before going back to him some ten minutes later.

"Well?" Rick asked.

Daryl was stood looking around. "What is this?" he asked, looking like he was a little confused.

"It was Lori's idea."

"You wanna keep me outside?"

"No, of course not. It's clear that for whatever reason you can't stay inside and we can't lose you. It's not safe to stay outside the prison, so maybe that'll work. You can come in and spend as much time with the group as you want but you can spend just as much time out here as well. You can come and go as you please, it's up to you." Rick shrugged. "I don't know, if this isn't the answer... we can try and think of something else."

"Something else?"

"A different plan." Rick put Daryl's lack of attention down to having been drugged the last couple of days. "So, you think that'll be okay?" Rick pressed.

Daryl looked at the tent. "Yeah, sure."

* * *

The others were eagerly awaiting Rick's return.

"So?" Carol pressed.

"I think it'll work better for him but you know, he's still a little tired from being sedated," Rick said, using tired seemed the kindest way to put it.

Rick noticed a look of disappointment on Lori's face but she quickly pushed it aside. "We should start getting this place a little more like home," she said to the group. "Maybe we can all feel a little more comfortable here."

* * *

The first night outside, it rained.

It rained so much Daryl could barely sleep. The sound of the rain hitting the gazebo was so loud in comparison to the quiet they'd endured inside the prison.  
He dozed off a couple of times but both times woke quickly, confused and disorientated as to where he was.

When it started to get light, he missed the group enough to drive him inside.

He didn't want to be in the prison, with its cages and bars, but he wanted to be with those people that locked themselves away in there.

So despite his fear of the building and the memories it bought up, he went inside.

* * *

Lori and Carol had both woke early and decided to get started on breakfast early.

They spoke freely and easily to one another. Lori talked about how a typical breakfast went in her household and Carol returned with her own story. Lori was certain that Carol kept it lighter than it probably would have been, knowing how Ed had treated his wife, but she wasn't dwelling in the past any more.

As Lori finished telling a story about a disastrous trip Rick had taking Carl to the zoo for a Father-Son bonding day, Carol stifled a laugh herself.

"What?" Lori encouraged.

"Remember how I told you Ed was into survival stuff?" At Lori's nodded agreement Carol continued. "Well, he liked to be self-sufficient so he went hunting a few times because he wanted to be able to catch and kill his own food."

"He wanted to be like Daryl, you mean?"

"Exactly like Daryl!" Carol agreed. Laughing a little she continued, "I could see it now, if Ed had survived him and Daryl kicking it back, hunting together like best pals."

Lori grinned widely at the very idea of the two men together. "So what happened?"

"Near the water's edge he spotted a deer on the other side. Figured he could shoot and then go round and collect it but he got too close to the edge and fell in. I had to try my hardest not to laugh in his face at the state he came back in."

Lori laughed louder at that image.

* * *

Daryl didn't expect anyone to be awake just yet but he heard voices before he got too far.

He headed towards them until the mention of his name stopped him in his tracks.

_"..like Daryl you mean?"_

_"Exactly like Daryl! I could see it now, if Ed had survived him and Daryl kicking it back, hunting together like best pals."_

She thought he was like Ed?

The idea horrified him. He quickly turned and headed back to the yard.

* * *

"Are we making food for Daryl or not?" Carol queried.

Lori shrugged. "He has everything he needs out there. Maybe see if he comes in today... make enough so if he does come in there's some leftovers for him?"

"Sounds like a good idea."

_

The rain wouldn't stop.

Almost three days straight, the rain poured down and Daryl wasn't sure whether he hated being outside with the constant noise of the rain or whether being locked in the prison would be worse.

So on the fourth night with little chance of getting any sleep, he headed inside.

It was dark outside by the team he went in and he was surprised to see Hershel still about. The others seemed to have gone to bed for the night.

He smiled at Daryl, looked over his appearance and how exhausted the man looked and came to the conclusion that the arrangement with Daryl staying outside the walls of the prison wasn't working.

For now, his observations stayed to himself. Daryl didn't need to hear about his opinions.

"We saved you some food if you want some." Hershel offered.

Daryl nodded and Hershel dished up a plateful of food and set it down in front of his as Daryl sat at the table. He didn't look like he was inclined to eat anything right then but Hershel decided to dish himself an extra portion up, even though he wasn't the least bit hungry, in hopes of keeping Daryl company.

Once Hershel started to eat, Daryl followed too and Hershel waited until Daryl had eaten the majority of his food before he started to speak. "So, it's nice to see you back here. I hope you'll not leave it so long next time. The group misses you." Daryl didn't react to the that so Hershel thought he would try something different.

"So, what bought you inside?"

"Damn rain. I can't sleep, it's too noisy in the tent. I can't sleep."

Hershel nodded. "Why don't you go back to your old cell for the night? It's only one night. And I'm sure the rain won't disturb you from there."

Daryl sighed and nodded. "I guess one night won't hurt."

Hershel smiled as Daryl headed up to the cells. When he was gone, Hershel went to the door to the yard where Daryl had been staying. The ground was dry, no trace of rain. He shook his head, concern evident in his eyes. It didn't look like he'd been using the gas stove to cook either. So he was either eating the tinned food cold or he wasn't bothering to eat.

Sighing, Hershel closed the door.

He'd have to talk to Rick about this first thing in the morning.

* * *

They'd gone outside the prison walls to talk. Just Rick and Hershel.

Daryl must have woke early because he was back outside before anyone else was awake. And Hershel explained his fears to Rick. His hallucination of the non-stop rain, the lack of food he'd eaten.

Rick nodded as Hershel went through it all.

"What are we going to do?"

"We're gonna have to move on." Rick agreed. Hershel nodded.

"I think it's all we can do."

"So, I'm gonna take Daryl out, today."

"If you think that's for the best."

Rick nodded. "He's been okay away from the prison. He was fine with Maggie, he was fine when he went after that guy. He can handle himself, he can't handle the prison. He'll go out and find a safe place and when we know it's secure, we'll come back and get the rest of you."

Hershel nodded. Clapped a hand on Rick shoulder. "Everything will be fine." he assured Rick.

* * *

Daryl had followed Rick out of the prison with no questions about where they were going.

Hershel was going to let the others know of their decision to leave the prison. Rick was prepared to deal with some complaints when he got back. But when he thought about it, he wasn't sure he wanted his baby to be born at a prison.

As long as they found a safe place, a place more homely, then he didn't see it being a problem really.

Rick could sense a different type of calm wash over Daryl once they were away from the prison and he seemed to enjoy being away from it. And Rick wanted Daryl to feel that way all the time.

If Daryl just felt uncomfortable there, that was one thing, but it was affecting him more than that.

"We're not gonna stay at the prison," Rick said, breaking a long stretch of silence.

"What?"

"That's what we're doing out here. Finder somewhere better. Safer. I don't want Lori giving birth to my baby in a prison."

Daryl narrowed his eyes at Rick. "That's all?"

Rick spared him a quick look before turning back to the road. "No. You're a big reason why." He could tell Daryl was looking away from him now, averting his gaze, as though he were ashamed. "If it were anyone else, I'd do the same thing. If the prison affects you this much, Daryl, then it's no good. For any of us."

"I should have gone."

"We don't want you to go," Rick reminded him. "You're part of the group."

Daryl didn't say anything to that and Rick hoped the words might sink in.

Daryl paid little attention to what they were doing until Rick slowed the car. There was a wall, man-made, in front of them, blocking the road. And on the wall were men with guns pointed their way.

Rick stopped the car and looked at the roadblock.

"Let's see what this is all about," he said, stepping out the car, holding his arms up as the two men on guard looked at one another.

"Whattya want?" one of the guards shouted to them.

"We were looking for a safe place," Rick stated.

"Just the two of you?"

"There's more in our group, but we're the only ones here."

Once again the guards looked to one another. One nodded and disappeared from view and suddenly, the gate was swinging open and they were welcomed in.

* * *

They were taken to a room and sat at a table.

It was pleasant enough and Rick was surprised to see Daryl relax into a chair. He started to wonder if Hershel had slipped something into Daryl's drink to loosen him up a little, calm him down, but he was certain he would be told about it if he had. Then again, if all it did was relax Daryl a little there would be no need for a heads up.

The door creaked open and a tall man walked in. He smiled at the pair. "Gentlemen, I hear you're looking for salvation?"

Daryl dropped his gaze the moment he saw the man. The stranger noticed it too, his brows crinkled in wonder for a moment before he turned to Rick. "Phillip. A lot of people here call me The Governor. A nickname of sorts that's stuck." He held out his hand.

"Rick," he offered, taking the hand offered.

Daryl made no attempt to introduce himself, no matter how much Rick stared at him. "I'm sorry," he apologised on Daryl's behalf as The Governor's hand went ignored as he held it out before the other man. "That's..."

"No, it's okay, Rick," The Governor said. "Sometimes the only thing a man has left is his name," he turned his attention from Daryl to Rick and sat in one of the free chairs. "So, you've come here looking for a place to stay, is that right?"

Rick nodded. "That's right."

"And there's more of you?"

"Yeah, we came ahead to try and scout out a location. A safe place."

The Governor's smile broadened. "Well, you can't get much safer than Woodbury. Can you tell me who else is in your group, how many?"

"Eight more. We have a couple of able-bodied men who could help with your patrols, besides from the two of us. A pregnant woman, a child, an elderly farmer and his two daughters. Another older woman."

The Governor smiled. "A real mix then,"

"Have you got room for us all?"

Phillip's gaze went from Rick to Daryl and back again. "You people have been through a lot?"

Rick nodded. "We were on a farm before this. Lost a few people there. It got overrun and we had to leave."

"We've got the room here. And you'll be safe. Especially the elderly and children."

The look of relief of Rick's face was clear. "The baby is yours?" The Governor guessed. Rick nodded. "Will listen, why don't you boys take a look around the place, see what you think. I'll have Martinez show you the place. Then you can grab something to eat before you go back."

"That sounds good," Rick agreed.

"How long do you think it will take for you to get back here?"

"Hopefully back tomorrow. Might be the day after, depends if we have any hold up's."

"I'd offer you some of my guys to help but there's a bunch out searching for resources right now. What with four walls to guard 24 hours a day, I just don't have that manpower."

"That's okay. We'll be more than willing to help when we get back."

"Well then, I'll send Martinez over to you. I'll see you in a couple of days," with that, The Governor left the pair alone.

Once The Governor had closed the door, Rick turned to Daryl. "Well?"

Daryl shrugged. "Seems a good place."

"Yeah. And there are kids here. Carl's age, Beth's age... this could be what we've been looking for since we left Atlanta."

And Rick seemed so sure, so certain that this was the place for them. All Daryl could do was nod in agreement.

* * *

There was a celebration that night.

To welcome the new people to the town. Rick knew coming here was a good decision. His people were happy.

Lori was relaxed, smiling. Her pregnancy for once didn't feel like such a curse. Carol stayed beside her most of the time as other women came to them with their children, or their own pregnant bumps.

Carl and Beth were talking to the other kids there, enjoying the food and the freedom the place offered.

Hershel made his way towards The Governor. "It's a mighty fine town you've made here."

"Thank you. It's what this world needs now. Normality."

Hershel nodded. "Seeing my daughters relax, acting like they did before all of this... it's a true blessing."

Phillip nodded, his attention drawn away as the gates opened. "Looks like the scouting party has returned, excuse me." He dismissed himself and followed the car that had driven in away from the party. Hershel watched as Phillip spoke to the people in the car before it was driven out of sight and Phillip disappeared into a building.

"So?"

Hershel turned to the man stood beside him now. Rick. He still looked unsure. Whether this was the right decision or not.

"I think this place might be home, Rick."

Rick smiled. "I can't tell you how good it feels to know Lori could have the baby here and she'd be safe."

Hershel nodded. "It'll do Carl good to be around kids his own age. It'll do us all some good, no doubt."

"And Daryl?"

Hershel nodded. "He'll need some time. I doubt he's been in such a community before. But he has time and space here. He might find himself settling in."

"I have more good news, people," The Governor called over the gentle chatter from the people. They all silenced as he started to speak. "The scouting party just returned and you know what we have for this welcoming party? Not only some more beer," that was greeted by a cheer from the crowd, "But how about some Wild boar!" a larger cheer came from the crowd.

"Sounds too good to be true," Rick muttered to Hershel.

Phillip was smiling broadly. "Someone get that fire going. Should be enough for all. And make sure you thank our resident hunter," With that, Phillip walked away into the crowd of people.

Rick exchanged a glance with Hershel.

"Maybe you can tempt Daryl out into the fray with the idea of fresh meat and beer," Hershel said.

"Might be worth a try," Rick said, nodding his approval. He was still worried about him, he couldn't help it. He walked across the street to the building that housed the group. There were still a fair few empty places in Woodbury, so The Governor told him and eventually, he would look to get more accommodation to keep the Town's growth going.

Rick couldn't help but admire this place. What The Governor had done.

He'd housed all these strangers. Most of the group were sharing rooms. Rick, Lori and Carl was obvious enough, Maggie and Glenn, Hershel and T Dog, Carol and Beth and Daryl had his own room. Which was for the best.

Rick headed to Daryl's room.

* * *

"So the trip went well then?" Phillip asked the returning group.

Martinez nodded his head. "Most successful run we've had, thanks to Merle."

"I told ya man, nothing gets in ma way of gettin' what I want," Merle smirked.

Phillip smiled. "Good work, the both of you. Martinez, take watch on the North wall. There's been a lot of activity over there today. What with the plans for this evening, I want to make sure everything goes smoothly. But I'll make sure you get a chance to join in the party, don't worry."

"No sweat," Martinez said, heading off to do his bit.

Once he was gone, The Governor turned to Merle. "You did good today. Considering this was the first scouting mission you've been on,"

"Told ya I can handle my end,"

The Governor nodded. "We got some new people in. Small group, kids and women. The men seem capable enough."

Merle nodded. "No one that needs taking out?"

"Not yet. Although their leader might need to be dealt with. But if he stays in his place, then we'll be good."

Merle nodded.

* * *

Rick knocked on the door and waited for an answer.

When none came, he pushed on inside.

"Supposed to wait 'til I answer," Daryl bit back at the intrusion.

"Sorry, I didn't know if you were gonna or not," Rick supplied.

"You should come outside. Someone caught a boar. Gonna roast it up later. Got beer too," Rick said.

"I don't think I need to be getting wasted right now, Rick," Daryl replied.

"Well what do you need then?" Rick asked, lowering his voice and stepping inside the room, closing the door behind him. "You know, we did everything we could for you at the prison and it wasn't enough and so we moved here to help you, and what, it's still not enough? Help me out here, Daryl because I don't know what else to do?"

"Y'all can leave me alone!" Daryl replied angrily. "I didn't ask for yer help!"

Rick took a deep breath, calmed himself. He knew getting frustrated with Daryl wasn't going to help. "I'm sorry, okay? I'm just worried. I don't know what to do, Daryl. I'm trying... we all are, but we don't know what to do. There's a doctor here, maybe go see her?"

"Screw you, Grimes! Get the hell outta here," Daryl said, getting up and walking towards Rick, backing him up to the door.

"Fine, just think about it, okay? At least come out for dinner."

* * *

He didn't see it coming.

One minute everything was fine, people were enjoying themselves and the next, chaos.

People were screaming, fleeing, a single shot sounded.

And then he found the source of the problem. One of the men in the new group, a large black man now with a bloody nose, was on the ground and in front of him, Merle clutched his arm, blood flowing from a wound in the shoulder. And just behind him, holding the gun, trained on Merle was the leader of the new group, Rick.

"Put your weapon down, now!" The Governor demanded.

"Not until..."

Merle held his one good arm up.

Rick lowered his weapon. "I'm sorry, but he attacked one of my people," Rick explained.

"Merle punches him in the face so you shoot him?" Phillip asks.

"He's dangerous," Rick insisted.

"I ain't the only one," Merle said. "These here are the good people I was with who left me locked up in Atlanta. Made me saw through my own hand,"

Rick could feel the people turning against them.

And then of course it happened.

"Merle?"

* * *

The town seemed to still and a silence spread across them all. The brothers stared at one another before the Governor's voice broke through.

"Okay, Rick I need a word with you. Your friend with the bloody nose should go see our doctor. You too, Merle."

Merle nodded finally breaking eye contact with Daryl as he headed towards the doctors office. "C'mon," The Governor said, urging Rick to follow him. Lori grabbed onto Rick's arm in a show of support before he followed the other man. "Everyone else, continue to enjoy yourselves. We'll be right back."

Once they were out of the streets, The Governor turned to Rick. "Look, I'm not the type of person to demand people walk around unarmed but what you just did..."

"There's history. Merle attacked my friend. He could have killed them, any of them. I know I reacted badly and you have every right to demand us to relinquish our weapons. But my people won't feel safe here unarmed and I'd have to take them."

Phillip nodded. "I understand. It's tough. I can assure that Merle will behave. And I take it the man he was staring at is his brother, right?"

"You know about Daryl?"

"Merle mentioned you all. But he was concerned with where he's brother was. If he was okay. I always assured him his brother would be fine. I'm glad I was right about that."

"Daryl's doing okay," Rick said "he just needs to settle down here. It'll be good for him."

The Governor nodded. "Why don't you and your people come over for a proper welcome later on. I'll get Malcolm to bring you over a little later and you can meet some of the key people here in a more intimate setting. It's a little overwhelming right now, I know."

Rick nodded. "Thank you." He headed back out where the others were gathered. The party was continuing but the group were waiting for Rick.

"Everything okay?" Lori asked, anxiously. Rick smiled warmly, easing her fears. "Everything's fine. Don't worry about anything, okay?"

"They were okay with you shooting Merle?"

"Well, I think it was understood what happened there. And not to be repeated."

"And Merle's okay with that?"

"Don't worry about Merle. The Governor's going to take care of us all, okay?"

* * *

Merle hadn't really wanted to waste time with seeing the doctor after laying his eyes on his brother for the first time in months but he'd had little choice. He just wondered where he'd find Daryl when he got out of here.

He didn't have to worry. Daryl was sat on the floor opposite the door Merle emerged from, wound treated and bandaged.

"C'mon," Merle said, nodding towards another room a little further down the hallway. They headed inside, Merle closing the door behind him.

Merle looked his brother over, a frown forming. "You look like shit, brother."

"'m fine," Daryl shrugged.

"Like hell you are. What's that pig been doin' to you?" Merle asked, reaching out and grabbing hold of Daryl's wrist and pulling him closer. Daryl forcefully pulled himself clear of his brother.

"You're the one who left. Could 'av come back. Knew I was at the quarry."

"Sorry, too busy trying not to die from amputating m'own hand." And to emphasise it, Merle stuck his stump in front of Daryl's face. Made him see it.

Daryl looked away. Wrapped his arms tightly around his body, protected himself. Silence fell between them before Daryl managed to steel himself enough to tell Merle what happened. "We went to a prison. And I couldn't deal with it."

Merle studied Daryl for a moment, face slowly contorting into rage. "I'm gonna kill that bastard,"

"Merle!" Daryl called out after him as Merle headed out the door, out towards the party. But Daryl's calls fell on deaf ears and Daryl stopped, watching him go but desperate to stop him. "Merle. Merle please don't leave me again!"

And Merle froze in his tracks, the words uncomfortable to hear when he knew how badly what happened before had affected Daryl. He wanted to sort things out his own way but after all the time he'd been parted from his brother, he remembered how he'd promised himself if he found him again, he'd not just walk away from him. He's take what Daryl needed into consideration. It needed to start now.

"C'mon. I got a nice place here. You're staying with me where I can keep an eye on you."

* * *

Merle could smell the cooked meat from his catch.

He'd spent time and efforting bringing it back, looked forward to having his share of it and how, instead of enjoying it he was sat in his apartment room watching his brother. Daryl wouldn't tell him much about what happened before they got here, just that they'd been at a prison and Daryl hadn't wanted to be there. But Merle knew there was more to it than that. There was a haunted look to his eyes. He was paranoid and afraid. And he could hide things so well until he slept. Then Merle was able to see the truth.

How badly Daryl was suffering. His initial reaction was to go over to the others and take this out on all of them. But he knew he couldn't do that. Daryl would be angry with him if he did. It didn't mean he had to be happy with Rick and the other being here though.

OOo

"This is a lovely place you've made here," Lori said as The Governor held open the door for the group. They all filed into the room and found a large table set up with some drinks poured out for them all.

"Thank you. I couldn't have done it alone. Everyone's been a big help here. Please, come and get yourselves a drink. I insist."

"I can't," Lori said, rubbing a hand over her stomach.

"I don't touch the stuff myself. And I'd rather my girls didn't either."

"It's just one glass, Daddy," Maggie said, picking up a glass for herself.

Phillip offered one to Beth but she shook her head.

"I wanted to formally welcome you all here," Phillip said, pouring himself a fresh drink and then holding up the glass for a toast, "Things will be better for you here, I promise."

oOo

There was a vague time in Daryl's life when he was still a kid, that seemed to be totally dark. Like he'd known nothing but darkness for such a long time that it was all he remembered.

There was a fight one night. Daddy and Merle. Daryl had been in his room, staying out the way because things were bad. If he got hoe and Daddy wasn't there, he could sneak upstairs and stay undetected for the night. But if Daddy saw him, there'd be trouble. It wasn't always being locked in that shed now, the beatings were becoming more frequent. More savage.

This one night he heard Merle arguing with their Daddy. Merle was out of control and Daddy was drunk and Daryl just tucked away in a corner, hoping they'd stay away from him, that maybe he'd just stay up here and they'd forget about him altogether.

But Merle didn't forget him. He came up in a rage and took hold of Daryl by the wrist, dragged him out and down the stairs. Daddy was raging at Merle and at him and Merle pulled Daryl into the garden and showed him. The shed was burning and he realised it was Merle, what Merle had done.

He burnt it down so Daddy couldn't lock him in that rotting shed any more. So he couldn't hide Daryl away like something he was ashamed of.

"You gotta do the rest, brother," Merle told him and then that was it. He was gone.

And so Daryl couldn't sleep with Merle there. Pretending he wasn't watching his every move, every twitch. And he hated Merle's scrutiny.

And that was when he realised something.

That sickness that was in him. The one he noticed at the prison and he blamed on it's confining spaces and dark, damp cells. It wasn't the prison that bought it out in Daryl.

It was inside him all along.


End file.
